In the book
the Great Gatsby, the division between classes is emphasized. This is shown between West Egg and East
Egg. West Egg is meant to represent new
money, people that have just come into the wealthy class. East Egg displays the beneficiaries of old
money, people that have inherited their wealth.
With each place come different lifestyles. New money is characterized by their
flamboyancy and extravagance. Meanwhile
old money shows their wealth through tradition, such as attending a certain
university. And then there is everyone
else.
What I find
interesting in the book are the characters who are in between it all. Immediately I think of Nick Carraway, but it
could also be argued that Tom Buchanan or Myrtle Wilson are also caught up with
all of it. It is established that Nick
is from old money. It makes the reader
question why he might be trying to do things on his own. Is he trying to prove something? Or is he trying to get away from the
lifestyle? Nick can show the reader the
positives and negatives of both lifestyles.
But these things also affect Nick’s own decisions. He tries to balance both while still staying
pretty grounded. There is also Tom and
Myrtle who seem to be trying to escape their own lifestyles and going for the
‘new money’. And using these two
characters Fitzgerald, the author, really shows the attractiveness of this
lifestyle during that time. The new
money lifestyle attracted people who were dirt poor to extravagantly
wealthy. I think one of the underlying
questions throughout the book is whether this lifestyle is good. If it is just fun and games or a way to
distract from one’s problems?
